Which network characteristic is associated with providing redundant links and devices?

• A. Security
• B. Fault tolerance
• C. Scalability
• D. QoS

Answer: (B)

Fault tolerance is the network characteristic that ensures the network keeps operating even when parts fail. It does this by introducing redundancy—extra links, devices, and components—that create alternate paths for traffic and allow automatic failover when a link or device goes down. With dual routers, multiple uplinks, or redundant power supplies, traffic can be rerouted and services remain available, minimizing downtime.

Security is about protecting against threats and safeguarding data and resources, not specifically about keeping services up if something fails. Scalability concerns how well the network can grow to handle more devices or traffic, which is about capacity and expansion rather than automatic continuity during failures. QoS (Quality of Service) focuses on prioritizing certain types of traffic to meet performance requirements, not on redundancy or continued operation after a failure.